Antwerp

• 1. The Scheldt River And Global Port

  ›

  Flowing through Antwerp is the river Scheldt. This waterway links the city to the North Sea via the Westerschelde estuary. The Port of Antwerp ranks second in Europe after Rotterdam and sits within the top 20 globally by tonnage. In 2018, the port handled 235.2 million tons of cargo. It serves as a massive hub for general project cargo and bulk goods. Five oil refineries sit within its docklands, creating a petrochemical cluster second only to Houston, Texas. Electricity generation also thrives here with four nuclear power plants at Doel and a conventional station in Kallo. A wind farm occupies the northern part of the port area. Plans exist to extend this energy infrastructure between 2014 and 2020. Old Belgian bluestone quays border the Scheldt for several kilometers north and south of the city center. These historic stone walls remain for sentimental value and now host cruise ships and short sea shipping.

• 2. Medieval Origins And Early Fortifications

  ›

  Historical Antwerp allegedly had its origins in a Gallo-Roman vicus. Excavations near the Scheldt river in 1952, 1961 produced pottery shards from the mid-2nd century to the end of the 3rd century. In the 4th century, Germanic Franks settled the area and gave it its first name. The Merovingian Antwerp was evangelized by Saint Amand in the 7th century. Het Steen Castle has its origins in the Carolingian period during the 9th century. This structure may have been built after Viking incursions when Normans invaded Flanders in 879. The surviving building dates between 1200 and 1225 as a gateway to a larger castle of the Dukes of Brabant. That main castle was demolished in the 19th century. At the end of the 10th century, the Scheldt became the boundary of the Holy Roman Empire. Antwerp became a margraviate in 980 under German emperor Otto II. Godfrey of Bouillon served as Margrave of Antwerp from 1076 until his death in 1100.

• 3. Golden Age Economic Dominance

  ›

  By 1504, Portuguese merchants established Antwerp as one of their main shipping bases for Asian spices. The city doubled its population between 1500 and 1569. Foreign trading houses moved from Bruges to Antwerp at the end of the 15th century. An English merchant association building appears specifically mentioned in 1510. By 1531, the Stock Exchange opened with the motto To the merchants of all nations. Francesco Guicciardini stated that hundreds of ships passed daily while 2,000 carts entered each week. Portuguese ships unloaded pepper and cinnamon directly onto these docks. Antwerp accounted for 40% of world trade at the beginning of the 16th century. It became the sugar capital of Europe by importing raw commodities from plantations on both sides of the Atlantic. Italian and German sugar refiners arrived by 1550 to ship refined products to Germany. Around 1560, the city hosted approximately 360 painters within a population of roughly 89,000 people. Moneylenders developed large businesses lending money across Europe including to the English government from 1544 to 1574.

• 4. Religious Conflict And Demographic Shifts

  ›

  On the 4th of November 1576, Spanish soldiers sacked the city during the so-called Spanish Fury. Eight thousand citizens were massacred and several houses burnt down. Over £2 million sterling of damage was done during this event. In 1585, Alessandro Farnese captured the city after a long siege. Protestant citizens received two years to settle affairs before quitting the city. Most refugees went to the United Provinces in the north starting the Dutch Golden Age. The Treaty of Münster in 1648 stipulated that the Scheldt should be closed to navigation. This impediment remained until 1863 despite relaxed provisions during French rule. Antwerp reached its lowest point in fortunes in 1800 when its population sank under 40,000. Napoleon assigned funds to enlarge the harbor by constructing a new dock named the Bonaparte Dock. He also deepened the Scheldt to allow larger ships to approach. After World War II, Antwerp once again became a major European center for Haredi Orthodox Judaism. About 15,000 Haredi Jews live there today with many belonging to Hasidic movements like Pshevorsk.

• 5. Modern Industrial And Fashion Identity

  ›

  A Ten-Year Plan for the port of Antwerp ran from 1956 to 1965. It expanded infrastructure using national funding to build canal docks. The plan succeeded in extending the linear layout along the Scheldt river by connecting satellite communities. Starting in the 1990s, Antwerp rebranded itself as a world-class fashion center. It emphasized avant-garde design to compete with London, Milan, New York and Paris. The city emerged from organized tourism and mega-cultural events. In 2019, Arte won the Fashion brand of the Year award at the Belgian Fashion Awards. The Antwerp label was founded by Bertony Da Silva in 2009. Designers such as Raf Simons, Veronique Branquinho, Olivier Theyskens and Kris Van Assche graduated from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts. This academy serves as the learning center for many successful Belgian fashion designers since the 1980s. The city also hosts the Antwerp Jazz Club founded in 1938 on a square since 1994. Large pop performances often occur in the Sportpaleis or Lotto Arena located in Merksem.